I remember that
by Reaching for Stars
Summary: Okay, not really sure when or in what game this fic is. Eventual Yuffentine, although there is another pairing in the beginning. Probably going to be a looong fic. T for language.
1. Chapter 1

Okay, so this is kind of random, slightly OOC, and mostly for my enjoyment, but... if you read it, I wouldn't mind a review. : )  
Disclaimer: I DON'T OWN FF7 OR ITS CHARACTERS. For the umpteenth time. Enjoy...?  


* * *

"Vinnie, I hafta tell you something." Yuffie shuffled her feet, looking embarrassed.  
He sighed, and would have rolled his eyes if he wasn't worried about offending her. "Yes, Yuffie?"  
"I...kinda...sorta...um...like you."  
"I like you too, Yuffie." He replied, carefully.  
"No, not like that. Like, I love you."  
A pause.  
"Oh."

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I remember that. Really, horrendously clearly. I mean, I can never remember the good stuff, only the major screw-ups. Like this one. Yeah, that was a screw-up. He just sort of looked at me like I was nuts, you know?  
And then apologized and left, leaving me standing there looking like the biggest freaking moron in the history of Gaia.  
Harsh, right? I know.  
It gets worse. We were still two days away from Midgar, travelling together to attend a 5-day AVALANCHE party. So I was stuck with Vin, the dark-and-broody-dotdotdot-ing-insomniac-y-vampiric-really-friggin'-hot-and-somewhat-old-guy-who-would-never-like-me-back.  
It sucked.  
Not to mention the fact that we'd be surrounded by couples. Lots and lots of couples. Tifa and Cloud, Shera and Cid... Barrett and his wife, Nanaki and his newfound mate...  
Me, Vince, Denzel-the-emo and Marlene-the-kid were the only single people there besides fricking CAIT SITH.  
Okay. Marlene, obviously, had an excuse. She's waaaaay too young to date.  
Me and Vince and Denzel have no excuses. I was seventeen, Vince was Leviathan-knows-how-old, and Denzel is... wait. I remember that I asked about that...

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"Vin? How old is Denzel?"  
"Seventeen. Why do you want to know?"  
"Just checking. Sheesh, you could sound a little less hopeful..."

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_Stupid Broody-Fucking-McBroodles_, I thought.  
If I hadn't been so hurt by the blatant rejection, I think I'd have had a tantrum.  
Anyways, it turned out that Denz was SEVENTEEN.  
_Either he's super ugly or really antisocial_, I thought_. I don't know, 'cause last time I saw him we were little titches anyways. Well, he was a titch, I was a ninja. Which means I was cooler.  
_

I remember that. We were travelling together, and suddenly she confessed that she had feelings for me.  
Which was somewhat awkward. I tried to put it gently, but I just didn't know what to say.  
**More like you were being a wimp. You totally should've screwed her brains out right then and there, you pansy motherfu-  
**AHEM.  
As I was saying, I had absolutely no idea.  
**You sound like such a prick right now. Get a fucking life, wouldja?  
**Chaos, we've talked about this. When I'm narrating, you're supposed to-  
**And since when do I listen to you, emoman? I'll talk when I fucking want to!  
**Fine. Just fine.  
**Damn right just fine. Ass.  
**Anyways. I remember that afterwards, she was staring off into space, occasionally making a face or blinking. Once she asked me how old Denzel was. _Hopefully she'll be interested in him_, I thought, and she must have guessed it because she said something about me looking hopeful.  
**As I said, man, you SO should've fucked her right then and there. I mean, it wouldn't have killed you to GET SOME ALREADY. You should have just said some crap about her eyes and then DONE HER.  
**...

...Well, the point was, she wasn't interested. Can't blame her, really, because she hadn't seen Denzel for years-  
**Not to mention the fact that you're really hot.  
**...Thank you?  
**It'd be better if you actually used that to get laid. I mean, you could get a job as a manwhore! Why waste it?  
**Why would I want to be a manwhore?  
**Um, hello? Not only is the sex free, but THEY pay YOU. Just imagine you're doing Jessica Alba or whatever and have fun!  
**Who's Jessica Alba?  
**...Never mind.  
**...Anyways, after a tedious and very awkward trip, we finally arrived at the party.

I remember that day pretty well. Tifa was all happy, y'know? She likes it when we have guests, no matter how much work it is. Cloud was out getting groceries when Cid came in with Shera and Barrett, and we started talking. That's why I didn't notice when Vince and Yuffie came in. Apparently they were pretty grimy, because I vaguely remember Tifa offering the use of the shower. They both accepted the offer, too.  
Vincent came down first. That actually kind of surprised me, 'cause he supposed to be a gentleman or whatever. At least, he's old enough.  
About fifteen minutes later, I hear someone coming down the stairs, and I'm like _hey, it's probably Yuffie. _So I turn in my seat and...  
Well...  
There she was. The last time I'd seen her, she was a bony klepto kid. She was still slim, but she jut looked so... I guess the word would be beautiful. You've seen her, right? Beautiful eyes, pretty lips, legs longer than Sephiroth's masamune, smooth skin, cute hair. Nice clothes and all that. Tifa saw me looking, and she sort of smiled, like she knew something I didn't.  
She was right.  
I was in love.

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Oh, man, what I remember about that day. I was all grimy, and I wouldn't let Vinnie polite-ize me into taking the first shower. Then I was walking down the stairs, not really looking anywhere. I remember Tifa was smiling about something, and I was just looking around. I got down the stiars and sat down in one of the chairs and I saw Cloud raising his colorless eyebrows at someone, and I looked at who it was, and it was Denzel.  
Except, I didn't recognize him at first. I remember staring for a few seconds and then going; "Sweet Leviathan. Denzel?" and he laughed. And although I was kind of still infatuated with Vinnie the Pooh, I still noticed that Denzel was neither super ugly nor emo...  
In fact, he's kind of really hot. Tanned, long-ish hair that looks super good on him, bluey-green eyes... and, well, let's just say him and Cloud probably hit the gym together. It was kind of a nice surprise.  
And then I remembered he was my age and that Vinnie had rejected me, and that the best remedy for a broken heart is...  
A REALLY HOT BOY.

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That day was confusing. I was downstairs, sitting beside Denzel, and Yuffie came downstairs. Suddenly, the two adolescents were staring at each other. For some reason, I found this slightly unsettling. I think it was probably that I am very used to attention from Yuffie, and it was odd not having her staring at me. Of course, this was completely unfair of me-  
**Bullshit! Bullshit! Triple Bullshit! You were jealous. Simple as that, man. YOU WERE JEALOUS BECAUSE SHE WAS INTERESTED IN A KID LESS THAN HALF YOUR AGE..... Hahahahaha.  
**Perhaps, perhaps not. I don't think so.  
Anyways, that day-

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-That day was yesterday-

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And, Leviathan help me, I have no idea what's going to happen next.**  
**


	2. Chapter 2

_  
May 21st, three years after Sephiroth_

Weird how we mark things by calamities and deaths. For example, in this video game I'm playing currently (stilld addicted to them, yeah) there's this place called Earth, and they judge time by the death of this Holy Guy called Jessu or something. Of course, they might have gotten the name wrong in the english version, 'cause it was translated from Wutain. They make all the cool games.  
Not actually in the country, but Wutain immigrants make all the good games. I doubt Godo and the other ancient geezers approve (well, in public) of scantily clad bounty hunting girls and stuff like that...then again, Yuffie had to learn that Sexy Ninja stuff somewhere.  
I'm getting off track. My point is, a lot of people use terms like "three years after ShinRa" and "the year of Meteor".  
But since I'm now talking about Yuffie, why not tell you about my day? I should keep in mind to hide this. If Yuffie knew I owned a journal, she'd...well, who knows?  
She'd probably steal it and read it, actually. But anyways. My day.

Okay, so I woke up as per usual, and I'm all like "bllllleeeeeeaaaaghhhh school...shoot me...." and I slapped my alarm clock or whatever I always do and rolled out of bed. That hurt, actually. I landed on my bruised arm (NEVER challenge Tifa to a fight because you think you actually learned something in martial arts) and I think Marly heard me swearing, 'cause I heard her asking Cloud what "shifuckinbitch" meant. Luckily, he didn't notice me choke on my cereal.  
So I was almost ready for school when Tifa pulls me aside and says she needs to talk to me.  
I'm like, OH SHIT. SHE KNOWS THAT MARLY HEARD ME SWEARING. But she doesn't look mad, so I decided to just wait it out and not admit to spouting obscenities just yet.  
So, then she says, "Yuffie's coming to school with you."  
And I'm like, "Wait, what?"  
And she goes, "Yeah, just for the month. She decided to stay here yesterday and she wanted to try public school."  
And I'm like, "Wait, what?"  
And she's like, "Denzel, are you even listening?"  
"What?"

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_Tape 1, side A.  
_

It was an interesting day, to be sure. I had a room to myself, which was a definite cause for celebration.  
**You're kidding me, right? It's so much more fun with the little ninja girl! Not to mention she's got a pretty cute ass.  
**Once again, no comment.  
**Oh yeah, and Vince... how would I know that if you hadn't looked? Answer me that.  
**See previous answer. Anyways, I woke up, went downstairs, poured myself a cup of-  
**Blood. Ha ha.  
**TEA. And then I ate-  
**Babies!  
**_Cereal._  
**Same difference.  
**Not quite. And I noticed Denzel and Tifa talking. He looked a little confused.  
**Still pretty good, though...  
**What? Chaos, are you...  
**Thinking that you should borrow some of his clothing? Yeah. Gay? Nope. Strife is gay. Not me.  
**Cloud isn't gay.  
**Vince, he lives with LOCKHEART. The babe of babes. She's like, a double-D with amazing hair and sparkly eyes and all that crap. If he hasn't pulled a move on her yet, he is the gayest of the gay.  
**I know for a fact he isn't gay.  
**How? You've asked him out or something?  
**No. He liked Aerith and hasn't gotten over her yet.  
**Oh. So... he's not gay, he's just a stupid emo.  
**Chaos....  
**Fine, I'll shut up. I'm just saying, Chocoboy's kind of a birdbrain. Heh, get it?  
**Yes, I get it.  
**Sheesh, tough crowd.  
**Chaos... do you know what I was talking about earlier?  
**Man, if you don't know, how am I supposed to know?  
**One of us should pay attention.  
**Yeah, and that should be you.  
**This is pointless.  
**Yeah, so shut up and let someone else narrate before you bore us to death.  
**Wait, narrate?  
**Uhhhhhhh.........  
**-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_May 21st, who cares what year, I'm seventeen, just calculate!  
_  
Okay, so today was really nervewracking 'cause I WAS GOING TO PUBLIC SCHOOL.  
Like, high school! Technically, I've completed my education, but I wanted to try it. Plus, hanging out with Denzel was better than helping Tifa out at the bar and avoiding The Pooh.  
Yeah, I'm calling Vinnie The Pooh now. Stuff it.  
So I came downstairs all happy and stuff and then I learnt the first sucky part of school: Dress Code.  
'Cause Denzel looked at me and then went, "You should probably change."  
And I kind of got offended. I was all like, "Excuse me? This is a perfectly acceptable outfit!" I then I ranted and he got out his agenda and found this page and showed it to me and I read:  
_No clothing that shows the midriff, shoulders, back, any portion of the breasts, or any portion of the leg above the knee is permitted.  
_  
I'm like, damn. So I go upstairs and I pull a new-looking (but really cool) pair of jeans and and an _acceptable_ awesome top and changed. So I wasn't that happy, but it looked good at least.  
Well, I wasn't that happy for about a minute. Then, well, you know me, diary. I was just peppy. : )  
When I came back downstairs, I admit I was being kind of... I dunno. Like I was trying to get a particular kind of attention, if ya know what I mean. I went over to Denzel and I said, "Is this outfit okay?" And I spun around and stuff.  
He looked me over and nodded, watching me a little.

So, yeah. I'm tired, I'll take a nap and write more when I wake up.

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**Okay, folks! The great Pooh has remembered what he was talking about: The Ninja going to school with Gamer-Boy who has cool clothes from a store Pooh should go check out.  
**Indeed. I'll skip to the part where Yuffie came downstairs. She was in one of her typically whorish outfits, humming and skipping like a child. Denzel told her she should change, and she flew off the handle until he showed her the dress code. She came back downstairs a few minutes later dressed like a normal human being, to my surprise.  
**And my sadness. Hotness should NOT be covered up.  
**And then she actually flirted with him.  
**Which made you jealous, which was why you glared at them both and refused to talk about her for the rest of the day. Until she came home from school crying and Denzel was leaving to go get some kleenex, when you asked her in a PURPOSELY soft and slightly seductive voice what was wrong. And...well, I wouldn't want to spoil the ending.  
**I suppose I shouldn't have expected Yuffie to simply tell me what was wrong, but I wasn't jealous.  
**Were too.  
**Chaos....

Okay, so when we got to school we found out she was in all my classes, which was pretty cool because she seemed a little nervous. Scared, actually. It made me feel a little sorry for her, you know? So it was nice that she knew someone.  
The day went fine until lunch, when we actually got the chance to talk to people without teacher supervision. Vipers didn't have the handler around, so they let out their poison.

So this blonde girl (who, by the way, has a face like a teeny barky weiner dog and is a total bitch) comes over to our table and goes, can I sit with you? And I'm about to say no but Yuffie says yes, 'cause she has no idea how evil this girl is.

Eyes sparkling, and probably with more malice than joy, the girl sat down across from Yuffie. Her two friends followed her, like hyenas waiting for the scraps of slaughtered animal.  
"So, you're Yuffie Kisaragi, right?"  
"Yeah," Yuffie nods, beaming with pride and happiness. Naively, the soon-to-be victim assumes she's made a friend.  
Denzel watches warily, not looking very happy. He has the distinct impression that something bad will happen.  
"Oh, so you're the wannabe ninja? The one who, like, runs around in whore clothing and hits on all the guys in avalanche? The girl with the really sad crush on Vincent, who's totally WAY too good for her and would probably rather shoot her than kiss her? You're the disgrace of Wutai, right? The one whose father hates her guts, because she's such a stubborn bitch? The girl who just wants to try living like a normal person for a month to see how she likes it, like it's some sort of retarded game? Who think's she's better than everyone else? Who do you think you are, bitch? Go home where you belong." The last words spat at the stunned ninja, the girls leave, giggling like something is _funny._  
Denzel tries to think of something, anything to say back to the blond girls, but realizes that anything he says will only make things worse. He looks at Yuffie, concerned, and sees that the shocked girl's eyes are swimming with tears.  
"I-...why...?" She manages, voice coming out weak and tiny. She's confused, and hurt, because deep down nearly everything the blonde said is something she herself believes.  
"People can be like that, Yuffie." Denzel murmurs, frowning at the vicious girl's back.  
"But..."  
"Hey, bitch! Why aren't you home yet?" One of the girls calls, and Yuffie looks like she's going to cry.  
"Come on, Yuffie, we're leaving."  
The two oucasts leave to the sounds of their peers' yelling, to shouts of "terrorist!" and "failure!".  
Denzel calls Cloud as Yuffie tries not to burst into tears.

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_  
_Ring. Ring.  
"Hello?"  
"Hey, Cloud."  
"Denzel, why are you calling?"  
"Can you come pick us up? Yuffie had a bad day."  
"...Okay. I'll be there in a few minutes. Make sure Yuffie doesn't run off."  
"Alright. Thanks, Cloud."  
"Bye, Denzel."  
"Oh, and get Tifa to call the school. Please."

"Sure."  
"See ya."  
Click.  
Dial.  
"Hi, you've reached Strife Delivery Services! How may I-"  
"-Tifa."  
"Oh, Cloud. What's up?"  
"Yuffie wants to come home. Call the school for her and Denzel, alright? I'm going to pick them up in a minute."  
"Oh, dear. What happened?"  
"I don't know."  
"I'll have to talk to them when they get home."  
"Maybe it's something they don't want to share, Teef."  
"...You're right. Well, it's Yuffie. If she wants to talk, she will."  
"Thanks Teef."  
"No problem,-" Backround noise. _So, whe oo oo wan iss, trife? _  
Click.  
"...Cloud..."

So then Cloud picked us up. the entire time, I was repeating three words in my head:  
_ninjas don't cry. ninjas don't cry. ninjas...don't cry.  
_But I kept hearing the voice of that girl in my head. _"You're the wannabe ninja, right?"  
_Over and over. So I started crying and Denzel put his arm around me and half-hugged me, and I think I cried into his shirt for a bit. 'Cause, you know, I remember it smelled really nice.  
And we get home and then we walk inside together, and he says, "Hang on, I'll get you some kleenex."  
And I remember thinking that that was...well, sweet of him.  
And then Pooh goes "Yuffie? What's wrong?" In the softest voice ever and I remember how the girl said all that stuff about how I was just being stupid liking him and all that and I just looked at him and went, "why do you care?" and then I started crying harder and I ran upstairs and the last thing I saw was Denzel standing there with a box of unopened kleenex.

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I don't know what Vincent did exactly, but he upset her big time. So I pretty much glared at him.  
"Why'd you upset her?" I asked, and I must've looked pretty pissed because he looked surprised as all hell.  
"I only asked her what was wrong." He replied, and I realized that he was probably telling the truth. Yuffie'd probably just...I dunno, maybe what that girl said about her and Vincent really got to her.  
"Oh. Okay. Sorry. I thought you'd...hurt her or something." I told him, and I felt kind of embarrassed.  
"I wouldn't do anything to hurt her." He assured me, and I felt like asking him if he knew how much she liked him, but stopped myself.

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Knock. Knock.  
"Yuffie?"  
"Come in."  
The petite Wutain's voice still sounded a little snuffly, like she'd been crying for a while. Denzel came in with his gaze lowered slightly, like he was visiting someone he shouldn't be visiting.  
"Are you okay- well, at least a bit better?"  
Yuffie smiled slightly into her pillow at his words. "Yeah, a bit." She turned to face him, and he felt a pang of sympathy at the sight of her tear-streaked cheeks.  
He sat down at the edge of the bed, handing her the box of kleenex. "Here. I don't know if you still need it, but it's nice to have one in your room anyways, just in case." He felt a little like an idiot, talking about kleenex boxes, but she smiled and he felt a little better.  
"Thanks, Denzel." There was a pause, and then the surprised boy found himself enveloped in a tight hug, one of Yuffie's finest. He grinned, pulling the little ninja closer and boldly kissing the top of her head.  
"No problem, Yuffie."


	3. Chapter 3

_Tape 1, side B  
_  
Tifa sent me up to Yuffie's room that night, to tell her that supper was ready. I didn't bother knocking, stupidly, and when I opened the door I found her wrapped around the boy.  
**The boy, huh? Too jealous to give him a name?  
**I'm not jealous.  
**Suuuuuuure. And I'm a poodle.  
**Actually, I find that rather easy to believe. You're all talk.  
**...EXCUSE ME POOH-POOH?  
**See, you act like you're furious and then do absolutely nothing. All bark and no bite- hence, poodle.  
**Poodles bite.  
**Fine, Chaos. You're worse than a poodle.  
**Fuck you, Valentine.  
**You wish.  
**Who spiked your drink?  
**No one. Marlene said I should have more of an attitude.  
**...BAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA  
**.....  
**HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HAHAHAHAHAHAHA  
**...  
**Ha ha ha... you're playing badass for a nine year old?  
**Oh, shut up.  
**It's official; Chaos: 120. Pooh: -2578.  
**Anyways, I found her wrapped around Denzel, and he kissed the top of her head. I felt this strange emotion, however, not unlike...  
[_long pause_]  
**What?  
**Not unlike when...  
**Well?  
**When... oh...  
**WHAT?!  
**When Lucrecia and Hojo were dating...  
**...Idiot. No, seriously, Pooh. It takes the ninja chick nearly making out with some guy for you to notice that you like her- AFTER you reject her? That's...pretty sad, even for you, mate. Damn.  
**I know, I know. You were actually right for once. My only hope is that I'm not too late.  
**And if you are?  
**Then I'll... I don't know.  
[_end of tape_]

The next day, as it happens, was a Saturday, and Denzel had a somewhat daring plan. Actually, there were two plans set for that date, but no one knew yet.

Previously, we'd encountered Cloud on his cell phone, in an unknown location. He'd hung up on Tifa rather mysteriously- why?  
_So, where do you want this, Strife?  
_Not wanting to be discovered, he'd hung up quickly. Now, he was about to put his little plan into action.

"Tifa, we've been dating for a while..."  
In the corner, Vincent silently mouthed 'I told you he wasn't gay' to no one in particular. Then, frowning, he added 'but I didn't know they were dating...'.  
"...and I haven't really taken you anywhere for some time. So, I asked Vincent to watch Marlene... and I made a reservation for today."  
Tifa looked surprised, and also somewhat excited. As always when she was happy, she was radiant, and she kissed Cloud quickly on the cheek.  
"Oh, thank you. I've been meaning to get away for a bit, but I just never had the time to make reservations. Where are we going?"  
"It's a surprise." Cloud smiled slightly. "But you'll have to be ready in... three hours."  
"Perfect- should I dress up?"  
"Yes."  
"I'll be ready." She assured him, giving the blond a quick hug before dashing of to get ready.

Denzel watched the two, wide-eyed, because he had a sneaking suspicion he knew what was going to happen. "Cloud, are you going to pro-"  
"Ssh. You'll find out when we get home."

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Yuffie was in her room, listening to her iPod (set on shuffle, of course) and swinging her legs in the air. She was lying on the bed, facing the window instead of the door. Which is why she didn't notice when Denzel came in.  
He crept quietly to the edge of the bed before prodding her foot (right in the ticklish spot) with his finger.  
"YEEEE- Oh, Denzel." She stopped mid-squelp (squeak/yelp a la Yuffie) and wrinkled her nose at him. He grinned. "Sorry. Didn't know you were ticklish or anything."  
"Well, now you know." She replied, tossing the iPod somewhat carelessly onto her beside table.  
Denzel smirked, and Yuffie was too busy contemplating how hot that was to notice how close he was getting- that is, until he started to tickle her further.  
"HA HA HA HA HA- No, serio-HA HA-uslyeeeeeehahahaha UNCLE hahhahahahaha-"  
Denzel tickled until she could barely breathe, then stopped. "Sheesh, you'd think a master ninja like you would notice that I was about to tickle the crap out of you."  
Yuffie sniffed, sticking her tongue out. "Well, I was distracted."  
"By what?"  
"You smirking."  
"Why?" Denzel sounded (and was) genuinely confused, but somewhat amused as well.  
"Because it's kind of sexy." Yuffie replied, grinning.  
"Oh. Uh," Denzel started, then realized he couldn't think of anything to say to that. "Well."  
Yuffie giggled.  
Denzel suddenly remembered why he was there.  
"Oh, yeah. Yuffie, I was wondering if you'd like to go to the amusement park. It just opened up, and I heard you like that kind of thing."  
"I'd love to! That's awesome! But... like just friends, or..."  
"Well, if you want just friends, okay, but... I was kind of hoping..." He smiled awkwardly, and his cheeks reddened slightly. "That it could be a date."  
Yuffie took a second to think about it, then smiled. "I'd like that, too. So, when do we leave?"  
"Whenever you want. It's open all day, so we can spend as long as we want."  
"Okay, awesome. Let's go. Thanks, by the way."  
Denzel, ever the gentleman (brought up by Tifa, what else would you expect?), smiled and said "My pleasure."

_May 22nd, Year I'm seventeen and the YEAR OF DENZEL _

Oh, that was a kickass day. It was so awesome! Denzel is... squee-worthy. See, he was totally polite and everything, which was really sweet, but not in that stuffy way that Vincent always is. And he was funny. And nice. And he didn't get pissed when I creamed him at the duck shooting game.  
I had SO SO much fun! He let me pick all the rides- turns out we have almost the EXACT SAME IDEAS and everything. We went on the roller coaster and the water rides and I seriously can't even BEGIN to describe how much fun I had. He offered to pay for everything, but he accepted to split the cost half-half, which was nice because I didn't feel guilty for making him pay.  
I think I'm officially...over Pooh.  
And me and Denzel are going out tomorrow, too.  
Oh, and the best part; we ran into the bitchy girl and she started to be all mean and stuff but he just cut her off, and told her if she was that jealous of me maybe she should stop bugging me and I'd give her some pointers on how not to be a bitch. And, usually I would have been annoyed 'cause that would be stealing my revenge, right? But after she started to talk back he let me take it. And then he gave me his ice cream so I could cone her.  
HE'S PERFECT.

_May 22nd, three years after Sephiroth, day of the first date with Yuffie_

I think that went really well. She seemed really happy.  
You know, making her happy like that? It makes me feel really good. And I just can't get enough of that beautiful smile.  
Going out with her again tomorrow. Got to go, I've got to babysit the neighbor's kids for money.  
So happy.  
_Her eyes are like the stars, shining light into my soul- _Some poet.

_Tape two, side A  
_

Well, Yuffie went on a date with Denzel today. I can't say I was surprised.  
**Neither was I, frankly. She was rejected, he's awesome, and you need better clothing.  
**What is with you and clothing?  
**Dude, you represent both of us. I want to be represented in that kind of clothing. Not LEATHER PANTS of whatever the hell you're wearing.  
**Well...I suppose I could go get clothing now. Marlene could come with me.  
**Ha, yeah, since Marly's your advisor on life at the moment.  
**Marly?  
**That's what everyone calls her. And it's...cute. And I like the kid, okay? I'm getting soft. Tell anyone and I'll kill you.  
**I'm sure you would.

At a small but very formal cafe/restaurant in Midgar, Tifa and Cloud were were sitting, sipping at wine.  
"You look beautiful, you know."  
"Thank you. You look dashing yourself."

"May I take your orders, please?" The waiter was young and handsome, with an odd accent. He looked slightly familiar, but since Tifa couldn't but her finger on it she just looked at the menu.  
She didn't notice the nod that passed between her date and the former redhead.  
Because she, unlike some people, hadn't noticed that Reno had black eyebrows. Cloud had just asked him to skip the dye for a bit, which, when given the reason, Reno agreed to do.

A few minutes later, a small dish was brought to the table.  
"Your _order_, Mr. Strife." The waiter said, winking and passing the tiny covered plate to Cloud.  
"I thought you were getting the shrimp?" Tifa murmured, confused.  
"I ordered something else. It had to be delivered a certain way."  
"Delivered?"  
Cloud smiled, nodding, and Tifa didn't understand until he got down on one knee and said the magic words.  
"Tifa, will you marry me?"

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Cloud and Tifa returned at about the same time as Marlene and I. We had a few shopping bags with us, full of clothing that both Marlene and Chaos approved of. A few of the saleswoman had been slightly amused when the small child had been approving or dissaproving of certain outfits, and I too had found Marlene's confidence funny.  
Cloud and Tifa, when they returned, looked ecstatic, Tifa going so far as to kiss Cloud for a good fiteen minutes on the doorstep. She sported a rather large ring on her hand, which had a single heart-shaped jewel on it. The other two half-sheres were tiny pieces of cure materia, she later explained.  
Marlene went to see them right away, jumping with joy at the news of the engagement, and then proceeded to tell them (in great detail) about our shopping trip. Both, needless to say, looked fairly amused.  
**It was kind of funny. Shopping with a nine-year-old.**  
I suppose. Yuffie was still downstairs, waiting for Denzel to come back, and she still looked...  
**Really happy. It was kind of a bummer, right?  
**Yes.

_Marlene's new recording device, dinnertime_

"Who was that waiter?"  
"Think about it, Teef. The eyes."  
"...You got _Reno_ to help? I'm impressed. And touched, actually."  
"I needed someone mischevious enough to pretend to be a waiter and someone who could pull it off."  
"What about...Yuffie?"  
"Too recognizable. And she was out with Denzel."  
"You were out with Denzel?!"  
"Yup! On a date. A really nice date, by the way."  
"Aww! You two! Denzel, you should have told me, I could have-"  
"He was great all by himself, Tifa."  
"Was he? Where'd you go, Denzel?"  
"The amusement park. I remembered she always wanted to go when we were little, but we didn't have time then. I figured it was worth a try."  
"Wow, Denz, supersonic memory! I don't even remember that, and I'm a ninja."  
"Heh, thanks."

"I'm impressed, Denzel- I hope you were polite?"  
"Tifa, that's totally the last thing you have to worry about. He was _perfect_."  
[_dinner noises, chair legs scraping back slightly_]  
"Mr. Vincent, where're you goin'?"  
"I'm more in the mood to eat outside. There's a very nice sunset out there, and I'd prefer not to miss it."  
"Can I come, Mr. Vincent?"  
"Of course."


	4. Chapter 4

_Week after last time I wrote, still seventeen_

Denzel listens to girly music!  
Haha. Good music, though. I never would have pegged him as the musical type, though. But then I borrowed his iPod and found the entire soundtrck from "Wicked".  
Hee hee.  
But, you know, he still has good taste.  
You know what I saw yesterday?  
Probably the sexiest thing of my existance.  
See, I was coming back from the ice cream shop and I went into the backyard (they bought some more land behind the bar so that they could play and fight and have barbeques and such) and sat down under a teeny tree (they planted it on Sunday, while I was at the movies with Denzel. : ) ).  
So then I hear some noises, like metal against metal, and I look up and THERE THEY ARE.  
Cloud and Denzel, with these cool new weapons I've seen at the WRO. They're like blades that you attach to the sides of your arms, and you whack people with them and they generally die.  
These were blunt, but both guys were shirtless and a little sweaty and it was really, really hot.  
Cloud eventually kicked Denzel's butt, but Denzel seemed happy enough anyways. And then he noticed me watching him, and he gave me this little smile (a really cute one, too) and waved.  
I waved back, and then went over and we kind of made out. Cloud rolled his eyes and left, but he thought it was funny, I could tell.

_Tape 2, side B  
_  
**Okay, Vince is really mopey today so I'm taking over. Kapeesh?  
Uh. Okay, why Vince is depressed...  
So he walks out into the yard to get some sun -and because Marly wanted to have a picnic. L'il cutie.  
And Denzel and Cloud are fighting, but it really doesn't matter to Vinnie because, well, who cares?  
I could totally cream that chocobo-headed birdbrain, too. Let's just get that straight.  
Even if I do listen to Taylor Swift.  
...Screw you. Love Story is an amazing song.  
...It's not like I cry or anything.  
...Well, not a lot...  
[**_**muffles sniffles, a faint cry of 'oh romeo' and a few more choked sobs**_**]  
Ahem hem. Anyways.  
NO I AM NOT CRYING.  
Fuckers.**

...So then the ninja babe walks out with some ice cream and gets all drooly over her boyfriend and then they start making out, at which point Vincent realizes that he's pretty much screwed love-wise.  
The fact that the only available female in the house is nine years old really doesn't help.  
So, yeah. I offered to give him a break and let him be emo at the back of our mind.  
...I wasn't being nice, by the way. I just felt like it.  
Okay?

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_May 29th, 3 years after Sephiroth, year Yuffie arrived  
_  
Ugh, sore all over. Cloud gave me a beating today, that's for sure. But he says that I'm getting better with the WRO weapon. It doesn't have a name yet. Shelke thought of the idea and then made it. It's pretty cool; hardy metal attached to these half-circles with straps, and you can adjust the tightness. You aren't supposed to use it for too long, because to keep it from slipping it has to go a little tighter and your circulation isn't really the best, but Reeve says they're well on their way to fixing that.  
They're thinking about mking it into a completely metal thing, with hinges, but they'd have to be made for individuals specifically, which might be kind of hard.  
I want to join the WRO. I mean, everybody in my family (and my girlfriend too) fights for justice and peace and life, and I just go to school. Reeve says that in the summer I could help out with the smaller missions, the really non-threatening ones. It's a little dissapointing, but I guess that's a good thing. Tifa won't worry.  
Plus, if it helps it helps, right?

Hmn, sorry, I kind of zoned out for a minute. I was just thinking about Yuffie. Heh, she's taken over my mind- mind ninja? Oh well.  
I still love her, and I think I'm gonna go see if she wants to go out somewhere. I've still got some money from mowing the neighbor's lawn.

They're going out again.  
I think I should try to leave. This is unhealthy and I'm only in the way.  
**I think you should talk to her.  
**...I don't know, Chaos.  
**Vinnie, if you don't, you'll always wonder what would have happened if you didn't.  
**...You've been right before this. I will, then, when she returns.

"I'll be right back, Yuffster. I'm just gonna go help Tifa get rid of the idiot over there." Denzel called, rushing to the aid of his adopted mother.  
"Okay!" She cried back, still happy from their date. They never went anywhere expensive or fancy, but Denzel was a lawnmower/babysitter/odd jobsman, so it was to be expected. Yuffie didn't mind.  
"Yuffie, may I speak with you?"  
"Pooh! Okay." Yuffie tried to ignore the slight twinge. She was dating Denzel. She was dating Denzel.  
Vincent no longer mattered.  
The gunslinger looked decidedly nervous, which was an odd change.  
"Vincent?"  
"I'm fine, Yuffie. I needed to...tell you something."  
She started to feel impatient. "Yeah, what?" He could see her impatience.  
_**Hurry it up, man**_, his demon urged. He took a slight breath and then continued.  
"Yuffie, over the past few days I've realized that I have feelings for you. I...like you."  
"I like you too, Vinnie," Yuffie said cautiously. It was odd to see her like this.  
"No, Yuffie. I love you."  
"...I'm sorry. I'm dating Denzel."  
The boy, who'd returned, heard that and decided that since Yuffie wasn't cheating on him that he'd go back and talk to Tifa some more._ Give them some privacy and such.  
_"But you loved me. How did you change so quickly?" Vincent asked, a little confused at the way she was acting.  
Yuffie frowned. "You didn't _care_ a week ago."  
"I did. I just-"  
"I heard your tapes, Vincent. I heard you recording them."  
Oh dear. So that was it. She's heard everything about his denial, his calling her hyperactive and a brat.

She was quickly becoming furious.  
"Actually, Vince, you did _more_ than not care. You _hated_ me a week ago. I don't know why you think you have a _right_ to talk to me like this right now! Because, you know what? Right now, you're trying to just string me along, but it's so _fake_. This is fake. You'll change your mind tomorrow! You don't really love me. You don't even like me! Do you just want to_ get some_, like your _demon_ said? Is that it? You're... do you know who you remind me of?" Yuffie asked, knowing she was going too far and relishing it.  
"...Who?" He looked stricken, tortured, but her icy heart ignored him.  
"Lucrecia." With that, she left.

_A broken man in seventh heaven... Life loves its ironies. _The man thought bitterly, and left the bar._  
_-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Day I went too far_

Leviathan, I'm a horrible person. I'm such a terrible person.  
I think I...

I broke him.__

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


	5. Chapter 5

_Tape three, side A_

She compared me to Lucrecia.  
I never-.....  
[_click_]

[_later_]

I only wanted to tell her that I loved her.  
I only...but, what could have...

[_click_]

[_Approx. ten seconds later_]

**GET A GRIP, YOU PANSY-ASS SON OF A DUNGBEETLE!  
IT'S JUST A FREAKIN' NINJA FOR CRYIN' OUT LOUD! SHE DUMPED YOU. WONDERFUL.  
MOVE THE HELL ON!  
**[_SLAP_]  
**OW, DAMNIT. I FORGOT I WAS IN HERE TOO.**

ANYWAYS, MY POINT IS SHE'S REJECTED YOU. AND YOU HAVE TO MOVE ON, REGARDLESS OF HER COMPARING YOU TO A TWO-TIMING FALSE TRAITOROUS BITCH.

Vinnie.  
Vinnie, you're not a two-timing false traitorous bitch.  
Vincent?

Could you like...you know...  
SAY SOMETHING?!?!

I'm wondering why she would compare me to Lucrecia.

**Because she's trying to kick where it hurts and doesn't believe you really love her. Let's face it, Vinnie; She **_**can't **_**believe you really love her. She's in love with Denzel, too, right? And he's perfect for her. She can't throw that away in good conscience, no matter what your feelings are. She wants to make Denzel happy, and she wants to be happy, too, and the best way to make everyone happy in that relationship is to stop mooning over Y-O-U.  
**  
For a demon, you're actually pretty insightful, Chaos.

**Thank you. You know, you realize these things, after watching so many humans. And TV.**

Speaking of which, this hotel has cable. Would you like to watch something?

**Okay, but... what'll we agree on?**

Is Coronation Street alright with you?

**Just peachy, Vincent. And after... how about Animal Planet?**

You're the demon.

**I believe this is the beginning of a beautiful relationship, Ilsa.**

Stop calling me Ilsa and maybe I'll agree with you.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_AUTHOR'S NOTE:  
__Yeah, I know, "She put a note in the middle! Unheard of! Absurd!" On the other hand...  
Okay, I'll stop it with the Fiddler on the Roof thing. Anyways, I'd just like to note that that quote is from Casablanca, I think. And I think the girl's name is Ilsa... anyways, um, just in case you were wondering.  
...No, I've never seen the movie. Your point?  
*Also, in the movie the guy's talking to a police officer, not Ilsa. That was just for humor._

_Who cares, I'm seventeen_

Well, I talked to Denzel about the Vinny thing. He said that I was right to question him, but that I shouldn't have made the comparison to Lucrecia. At this point, I'm thinking he's right.  
Vincent's gone.  
Like, he just up and left. We don't have a clue where he is. All we know is (ha) that he isn't here.  
I'm kind of feeling guilty right now, not to mention sad.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_No idea (I should ask Tifa), three years after Sephiroth, year of Yuffie_

Actually, Year of Yuffie has a nice ring to it.  
...I'm so dead if Yuffie finds this. I'll be laughed at until my pride is virtually nonexistant.  
Sigh.  
Well, Vinny confessed his love to Yuffie, and I have to admit I was pretty scared for a second there. Really, I do trust her, but...  
It's just that we've been going out for less than a month, and she's had a crush on Vincent for the past Shiva knows how many years. So I wasn't sure if she'd pick me, you know? I mean, if you like someone for that long it doesn't just magically go away. I know that from experience.  
You know that blond girl I was talking about earlier?  
Yeah, the one that bitched at Yuffie.  
When I was in primary school, we were friends and stuff, but then she got all obsessive about clothes and stuff and we sort of drifted into seperate groups- it doesn't help that as soon as you hit grade two, it's Girls VS Boys.  
Anyways, point is, at that time I had a crush on her, and in sixth grade I told her. She rejected me, and we parted ways for the summer.  
Well, I was still scrawny then. I wore clothes that were too short for me, stuff like that. So, I got a summer job and bought my own clothes, and I started working out with Cloud. It wasn't for her, it was... I guess to forget. To be better or something. Like, whenever I was bored and not doing anything, within the hour her face would appear in my head. And I'd just go out and work to keep that away.  
I didn't. But when I came back to school, high school that year, I was way more popular, not to mention good-looking if I do say so myself. Heh.  
Not three months into the school year, word got around that she was interested, and I just asked her out. Just like that. 'Cause I still felt that way.  
Anyways, I ended up dumping her because she was exposing her inner bitch, and she's hated my guts ever since. Popularity is no longer mine, but whatever, I don't care. They're a bunch of vipers, and I can do a hell of a lot better friends (and girlfriends)-wise.  
My point? Feeling don't go away after a few days when they've been around for a while.  
So, yeah, I was pretty relieved when she rejected Vince.  
The Lucrecia thing was kind of mean, but hey. Yuffie was upset, and people say things they don't mean when they're upset. I've done it myself, so I'm not gonna complain.  
Plus, my bad side _really_ enjoyed that moment.  
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ****

_Day after Vincent left, still seventeen HURRY UP BIRTHDAY_

NM happened today.  
Except went to movies with D, had fun. D is excited about something.

_Year of Yuffie, day before my very first WRO mission_

Yes! Yes infinity! Reeve's sending me on a small mission. Safe as houses, you know?  
Er, well, actually hopefully safer than houses. Houses aren't that safe.  
Example: With both owners of this house KOed, Reno and Rude still somehow were able to break in to set them down in one of the bedrooms. That's drunk-turkey and impaired-vision-turkey.  
HOUSES ARE NOT SAFE.  
Not to mention there's all sorts of wacked-out cleaning products that we had to keep out of Marly's reach for like, five years, because she would swallow them and die.  
...Anyways, I'm getting off track. I kinda do that.  
Well, my mission. Basically, I'm going down to an excavation site near Mt. Nibel. Reeve found some sick runes down there and stuff, and he thinks it might have something to do with Chaos or Holy or something like that, with monsters and demons and crap.  
I'm not going to be digging or anything, I'm just taking pictures. I'm a good photographer, and I wouldn't mind being a journalist later. Telling the truth to the people and all that. It sounds kind of bogus when you think of how corrupted the papers are and stuff, but I think people would like a source of good, un-tampered-with info.  
But, yeah. I've seen an artefact from the site. It's this old fragment of ceramic, with these beastie things on it.  
Gave me the shivers.  
Gotta go, Tifa's calling. Will update tomorrow if not too tired.

_Day of infinite sadness_

Oh my god._  
_

AN: Ha ha! This is payback for all you other evil writers leaving cliffhangers all over the place... HAVE A TASTE OF THAT MEDICINE, WHY DONCHA.  
...Um, I'll update sometime this week. Hopefully.


	6. Chapter 6

_Marlene's sound recorder, Midgar Central Hospital, Emergency ward._

"No. No, no, no, no, no..." [_a sob_]  
"Yuffie, calm down. He'll... he'll be alright."  
"What do you know anyways, Reeve!? You said...you said that he'd be _safe_."  
"Yuffie, I'm sorry. I had no idea that something like this could happen! Crying like this is not going to help him."  
"Yeah, well, it's not like he can even- even-" [_hiccup_] "_HEAR_ me, thanks to you!"  
"He'll be fine."  
"What if he isn't?!"  
"Yuffie, what's happened to you?"  
[_long pause_]  
"What?"  
"Where is your optimism?"  
"Reeve...Reeve, I'm just...I'm sorry, I..."  
[_pause_]  
"I'm just so scared."

* * *

_Second day of misery_

Visited Denzel at hopistal. Had a spat with Reeve, too.  
I'm so worried. What if he never wakes up? What if he dies?  
What will I do?  


* * *

_Marlene's tape recorder, Midgar Central Hospital, long-term patient's ward_

"Hey, Denzel. I brought you your gameboy, in case you wake up while I'm not here. I heard that people, you know, hear stuff when they're in comas. I'm not sure if that's true or not, but I decided to come here and try it out. "  
[_pause, shuffling, scrape of chair legs moving forward_]  
"They said that if- when you wake up, you still aren't in the clear. You lost too much blood. They said you'll need to stay at the hospital for a while. I'm going to miss having you around at home, but I'll come visit you.  
Heh, that's weird...home. It's not really my home, is it? My home was always...well, Wutai. And now it's here. I didn't even notice when that changed.  
"Guess they were right when they said home is where the heart is."  


* * *

MISSION REPORT (WRO)  
ARCHEOLOGICAL EXCAVATION MISSION, 2:09 PM, MIDGAR ZONE

Reeve,  
Because you have asked me to write this in a less formal manner, I converted it to letter format after writing it. It was slightly annoying.

What happened was this; the excavation was proceeding normally, and we had recovered many more fragments. Many of these had ruins and hieroglyphs on them, some depicting a large beast. Denzel Strife was working with me. I had assigned him to fetch the fragments that were found and bring them to me for examination- not, as you can see, an exceptionally dangerous job. At around three PM he came back and told me that the diggers had found a door.  
Naturally, we made our way to the site, and the doors were there as he had told me. They were tall, and chipped slightly. I realized almost instantly that the missing fragments were, in fact, the pieces we had found. It was as if someone had purposely scattered the ancient pictures of the beast in the ground above the doors. I now suspect that it was a form of warning.  
The workers dusted off the doors, and we could see that the hierogylphs composed a large mural of the monster. They also dug around the doors, which revealed that there was a room behind them. Dr. Feller, the head archeologist, encouraged them to dust between the doors, to remove any debris. It was then discovered that there was a seal on the doors, too cracked and dry for anyone to read. At that point, I suggested that we notify you before continuing, but Dr. Feller did not enjoy the idea. She broke the seal,  
and the doors swung open.  
At first I could make out only darkness, and Denzel Strife moved forward to take a better look.  
"There's something there," He told me, and he was correct. A monstrous titan of a beast then attacked the adolescent, who was unarmed. The beast bit him in several places, including the arm, leg, midsection, and face. I rushed forward and tried to hit the beast with my gun (Valentine has been teaching me how to shoot), which made the monster howl and leave the boy. It ran into the wilderness.  
Denzel was taken to the hospital as soon as we could get him into a vehicle. He did not speak a word through the entire drive. I am convinced that he was comatose.  
I will examine the ruins further, in an attempt to discover if the beast is poisonous. I am led to believe so, because Denzel did not scream after the first bite, which makes me wonder if there is not some kind of sedative or coma-inducing venom in his wounds.  
The beast, however, will need to be hunted and killed. I know of only two people who would be free and able to do so; Vincent Valentine and Yuffie Kisaragi. It is rather large, with black fur and red irises. It has the anatomy of a winged hound, and its teeth are long and numerous. It is a mammal, and its hide is not impervious to bullets or, I suspect, shruiken. It had long claws, and a few spikes on its spine. I will enclose a sketch for you.  
I hope you are satisfied with my report. If you have any further questions, I shall be glad to answer them.  
Sincerely,

Shelke Rui

P.S.; I am never writing a report in letter form again.

* * *

I finally noticed that the formatting was not showing up. ie; the dashes in between the ends and starts of documents. So I used periods. If the periods don't show up, I'm gonna be pretty pissed. (Edit; THEY DIDN'T WORK. Gah...)  
Anyways, I have a question. I tend to write several chapters at once, or I write a few over, say, a week and then post them. Do you prefer multiple updates over a week, each with one chapter, or do you prefer getting anywhere up to four or five chapters all at once?  
I prefer uploading it all at once, but if you'd really prefer it otherwise I will make more of an effort.  
You can answer my question in a review or in a PM, I really don't mind either.


	7. Chapter 7

_fuzz ee cannnt make  
cannnnt get up  
move got a move yu  
fee  
need to wake up_

mon stir  
mon stir? what is  
where yu fee  
want yu fee where is yu fee got ta move wake up  
WAKE UP

wake up! wake up!  
where am I? I need to wake up. I feel fuzzy. It's white in here.  
I need to wake up, find Yuffie!  
Tell her about  
Cetra clear tranquil monster hunters kill her NO  
Focus, focus, focus wake up wake up need to  
WAKE UP.

[_Cait Sith's audio records, tape 1 side A __**transcript**__, edited by Reeve Tuesti_]  
Tifa: "He's moving! Yuffie, He's moving!"  
Yuffie: Leviathan Shiva Ifrit _thank _you.  
Denzel: (_probably stirring_)  
Yuffie: Denzel! Denzel, can you hear me?  
Denzel: (_sounding tired and dizzy_) Yuffie? Where am I?  
Yuffie: Hospital. How are you?  
Denzel: I'm...awake.  
Yuffie: Well, that's good. I... I was scared.  
Denzel: I'll be fine, Yuffster. But I have some... I need to tell you...  
Yuffie: Don't put yourself back in a coma, Denzel, just spit it out.  
Denzel: They're coming for you. They're-  
(_At this point in time, Tifa tells me that Denzel started having some sort of seizure, and cried out- I have some of his words on tape, but some of it was just screeching_)  
NODONTAKERSTOPGETOUTOUTLEAVUSNONONOHELPPLEASEYUFFIE_RUN_THEYLGETCHUNOCANTNOPLEASE-...  
Yuffie: Reeve! REEVE! HELP! He's in PAIN! MAKE IT STOP!  
Tifa: We need a doctor over here!  
Doctor: Oh, boy- Lilah, get the tranquilizers!  
Nurse (Lilah, I presume): Here, doctor!  
(_Denzel was injected and promptly feel into a deep sleep. He didn't look too peaceful._)

_5th day of hospitalization_

Sweet Shiva, that was horrible. He had spasms or something, and they had to inject tranquilizers.  
And I feel horrible, cause you know what I just said right before he spasmed and comaed again?  
"Don't put yourself back into a coma, just spit it out". HOW STUPID AM I?  
To top it all off, I'm a failure as a ninja. Ninjas don't cry and here I am bawling my eyes out, getting water all over my not-so-excellent pensmanship.  
Denzel scared me. He was talking about someone coming for me, and then he told me to run and he was acting like someone was in his head.  
He's in critical condition now, for some reason. The doctors say that there's no physical explanation for the change.  
I think that if something was in his head, they did it.  
And if they can get into Denzel's head and they want to kill me... What's stopping them from getting into mine?  
Oh, and Godo called, not that it's important. He wanted me to meet this Wutain prince I used to know or something stupid like that. He sounded a little funny, though. I hope he's okay.  
I don't think I could take it if Dad and Denzel were in critical condition.  
Vincent's still missing. I'm getting a little worried-  
Wait a sec. I think that's him.

[_Cait Sith's audio tape __**transcript**__, side B tape 1, unedited]_

Vincent: Yuffie.  
Yuffie: Hey, Vince. Denzel was just up, but he freaked out.  
Vince: What happened?  
Yuffie: He said someone was coming for me. Then he had this...seizure.  
Vincent: Yuffie, are you crying?  
Yuffie: I-I'm scared. For him. He's not okay. And the doctors s-said that his wounds aren't closing p-properly, and h-he's not h-healing well...  
Vincent:... Yuffie, he'll be all right. It might take time, but he'll be okay.  
Yuffie: Fuck it, Vincent, how do you know? How does anyone fucking know? N-no one can t-tell so th-they might-might as well just sh-sh-shut up!  
Vincent: Yuffie! Yuffie, get ahold of yourself. Your hysterics aren't going to help anything.  
Yuffie: Who c-cares?  
Vincent: Yuffie...  
Yuffie: No. N-no. Don't l-look at me like that.  
Vincent: Like what?  
Yuffie: Stop it! St-stop looking at me!  
Vincent: I'm sorry.  
Vincent: Yuffie, he said someone was coming for you?  
Yuffie: Yes.  
Vincent: ...We need to leave. Now. Yuffie, we need to go.  
Yuffie: He was delirious! He wasn't even saying anything, just babbling after his seizure.  
Vincent: Reeve! I need Cait Sith.  
Reeve: I just printed the transcript. Yuffie's right, there's nothing coherent in the last cry.  
Vincent: Let me see.  
Yuffie: Vince...  
Vincent: You're wrong. We need to move Yuffie.  
Reeve: What?  
Vincent: The words are cut up. It doesn't look like much, but there is most certainly a coherent message.  
Reeve: Read it.  
Yuffie: What?  
Vincent: He was saying "No, don't take her. Stop. Get out, out. Leave us now. No, no, no. Help. Please. Yuffie, run. They'll get you. No, can't, no, please..." and then he stopped.  
Reeve: Give me the paper.  
Yuffie: No, you're wrong.  
Vincent: See?  
Reeve: He's right.  
Vincent: Something is still inside him, Reeve. He was talking to someone.  
Reeve: The odd wounds... maybe the venom produces some kind of delirium?  
Yuffie: I'm not leaving Denzel!  
Reeve: Yuffie, you must. Not only are you in danger, but Shelke believes that you and Vincent are the only ones who can defeat the beast.  
Yuffie: What about Spike? Tifa? Heck, Cid, Barret?  
Reeve: Cloud and Tifa are the only ones that could match your skill, and they can't take the mission right now.  
Yuffie: Why the heck not?  
Reeve: Well, you know Cloud has a broken leg.  
Yuffie: So what about Tifa?  
Reeve: She's pregnant, Yuffie.  
Yuffie: Fuck!

Vincent: Liter-...  
Yuffie: What?  
Vincent: Nothing. We should be going.  
Yuffie: But Denzel...  
Reeve: I'll watch over him. I promise.  
Yuffie:... After this, Reeve, I quit.  
Reeve: ...If that's what you want.  
Yuffie: Yes, it is what I want. I'll quit, and Denzel and I will go to Wutai.  
Vincent: To marry?  
Yuffie: Yes. No more adventures. People get hurt. Aer-... Denzel. Other people. And you too. No more.  
Vincent: What about the people?  
Yuffie: They can learn how to fight, can't they? When i get back to Wutai, Martial Arts will be mandatory education.  
Vincent: We'll talk later. Now we should go.  
Yuffie: Alright.

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Sorry for the long-time-no-update. I wasn't really feeling it.


	8. Chapter 8

'Kay, this is the last chapter for maybe a while. I'm sorry, but I really need to thinbk about where the heck this is GOING...  
I'll try to make it quick.

_1st day of travelling, year of Denzel_

It's me.  
I miss him. Leviathan, do I ever miss him! I  
It hurts. I just... I love him. So much. And now he's in a hospital miles away, dreaming of disasters.  
And I have to hunt down the thing that nearly killed him. I hate that monster.  
I swear I'm going to kill that beast.

I wish I knew he was okay.

_Excerpt from Vincent's notebooks, notebook 57_

Today is our first day of travels. We set off to a good start. Shelke told us that the monster had been heading in an almost direct course to Wutai, so we're exploring the forestlands nearby. Yuffie seems determined, but she is distracted and obviously misses Denzel. I tried to reassure her, but it had very little impact.  
"Vince, it's okay." She mumbled, giving me and uncharacteristicly soft smile. The smile I've only seen on older people, people who have loved and lost. A smile one would expect from Tifa Lockheart, not Yuffie Kisaragi.  
Where is her joy? Her contagious energy? Her inspiring smile? Where did the sparkle in her eyes dissapear to? Where is the skip in her step? She seems so small to me right now, so very small and fragile. She looks pale and tired. I look at her and my heart is overwhelmed with the desire to make everything alright again- but only Denzel has the right to do so now. He is the only one she wants.  
I'd do well to remind myself of that more often.

I thought I...  
I made the wrong choice. I could have been with her, but I threw that chance away.  
It feels like Lucrecia all over again.

Wait, there's something

_Cait Sith's audio records, tape D, side A, unedited transcript_

"YUFFIE!"  
"Denzel? Reeve, come quickly, he's awake!"  
"RUN! NO, NO, GET AWAY FROM HER, STOP IT, GO AWAY!"  
"Denzel! What's the matter?"  
"NO! VINCENT, HELP HER!"  
"Denzel! Wake up! Wake up now!"  
"THEY'RE GOING TO KILL HER!"  
"Reeve, where are you?!"  
"What's the matter?"  
"He's shouting and look, the spasms-"  
"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"  
"Reeve, do something!"  
"I'm trying, Tifa, but he's already pumped full of sedatives-"  
"YUFFIE! RUN!"  
"Denzel, WAKE UP!"  
"VINCENT, WHERE IS SHE? I CAN'T SEE HER!"  
"Wake up, Denzel, you're right here, Yuffie isn't here, she's with Vincent in the forest-"  
"PLEASE!"

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_C:\WINDOWS\Desktop\REEVE\Personal Files\Word documents\Diary Entries\This Year\Summer\July Tenth_

That scream has been in my mind all day. It was just so... desperate.  
We've analyzed his wounds over and over, and we can't find a single trace of chemicals. It's obvious that there's some kind of venom-induced effects, but I'm starting to wonder if there is actually any venom involved. Shelke was examining the runes, and apparently the bites were considered cursed. Which leads me to wonder if perhaps that is the reason there aren't any chemicals: could the wounds really be cursed?

Also, she has found fragments relating to the Cetra and some kind of underworld race. Somewhat like demons, as much as cetras are considered angels of sorts. It's intruiging; the thought that perhaps there was once an opposite of a cetra. Cetras have, of course, been extinct since Aerith died. The underlying question is, if these people exist, what do they want with- Clear tranquil. Only Cetras can use healing powers of that kind... I must investigate. Perhaps, somewhere along the Wutain royal line, there are a few beings not quite human...

_  
_


End file.
